How to Smile
by whitejaderabbit
Summary: Believe the impossible. Live, love and let live. Challenge the limits of normality. Live your life to it's fullest. Hold no regrets, and enjoy your existence. A light and inspiring romance. ShinoOC COMPLETE
1. Ayame

Green Tea: Ok, this is it, a Shino/OC fic. I don't think this girl is much of a Mary-Sue… I hope not. Please read it and enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own the main canon plot of Naruto, nor any of the characters. Ayame and the plot of this story, however, do belong to me.

Summary: She was strange. Odd. Happy. Eccentric. So weird that it left him breathless. And she specialized in reading his mind. But somehow, with just a smile, she gave him a complete tour of the beauty of life. (Shino/OC)

* * *

How To Smile:

Chapter 1: Ayame

* * *

Ayame watched the team as they trained, hiding behind a nearby tree. She watched them everyday, unless they were on missions. As long as they were there, she was there too. It was her routine, and she had no intention of changing it after almost four years...

* * *

Shino felt a presence that day as they trained... somewhere in the trees, watching him. 

After they finished their training for the day, he expressed his concerns to Kurenai. The older jounin just nodded.

"I know, she's been watching you guys for almost four years. A weird girl, eh? But it doesn't seem like she'll do any harm. I don't think she's a ninja. More like a ghost. Hah, we have our own little ghost."

Kurenai chuckled as she glanced off into the nearby trees.

"She's probably listening right now, if she can hear us, that is... Just let her be, she's not exactly bothering us."

Shino pondered this for a moment.  
"A 'she'?"

The dark-haired woman nodded and packed away her equipment.

"Yep... Apparently she's a local girl. I think Hinata knows her a little better than I do... Well, anyways, I've got to talk to Godaime-sama... I'll see you tomorrow."

"Mn."

Shino glanced again at the trees and saw a pair of bright blue eyes meet his, for an instant, and then it was gone.

* * *

The next day, and the day after, and the day after that, he continued to feel the 'ghost's presence, and grew more and more curious. 

Finally, one day, he met her.

The sun was beginning to set, bathing the sky in a gradient wash of red to purple, when she came.

Shino was the only one left on the training field, preoccupied with bandaging a particularly nasty wound Kiba gave him earlier during practice.

He was beginning to regret turning down Hinata's offer of help. The pearl-eyed girl was exceptionally good at temporary first-aid, while his skills left much to be desired.

He tried to pull the knot tight using his teeth and left hand, but failed miserably.

"You know, the knot won't hold if you tie it like that. And besides, you're binding it wrong."

Shino was up in a flash, holding a kunai in his uninjured hand.

"Don't worry, I won't hurt you... Or more like, I can't hurt you, even if I wanted to. But why would I? That's so silly." The feminine voice giggled, resembling the sound of lightly tinkling bells.

Shino looked to his left, and his right... No one was there.

"Behiiiind you."

He turned around and saw a girl about his age, with frizzy russet hair, hands held behind her back, and looking at him expectantly.

"I've waited so long to meet you! I now I can! It's so exciting!" The girl giggled again. But then she stopped abruptly.

"I'm so rude, I didn't even tell you my name. Anyways, I'm Ayame. Ayame Soramachi."

He knew instantly with one glance at her bright blue eyes that she was the girl 'haunting' their team.

"It's funny, what did your sensei call me? A ghost? That's so funny... I'm no ghost, just a girl that lives nearby."

She stepped out of the underbrush of the forest, out into the fading light and tilted her head to the side, as if he were a puzzle she was trying to figure out.

Ayame wore a strange, long sleeve tunic, decorated with brightly colored patches of... green lamps, and orange light bulbs?

Under the tunic, she wore a simple pair of faded jeans, along with a pair of bright green sandals. Her frizzy hair was tied back with a clip of some sort of purple bird.

Shino raised an eyebrow at her attire. Was she mentally deranged?

The redhead took off her purple clip and reclipped her hair.

"Nah, I'm not crazy or anything. Or maybe I am. But I think I'm normal enough. I just like things that normal people consider weird. But I have weird hobbies. Like observing your team. I suppose your sensei already told you that I've watched you guys for... almost three years?"

"Four." Shino replied.

"Ah yes, four... But before I go on, lemme help you with that."

She pointed at his right arm, which was still hopeless tangled with bandages.

Before he could object, she already was kneeling next to him, adjusting the dressings on the wound.

"You know, based on what I observed of you, I figured I'd have to approach you first. That's after you noticed me, of course. I had to do the same with Hinata. She would stare in the woods everyday after your training, but she wouldn't say a word..."

Ayame shook her head, loose curls of red catching on the corner of her mouth.

"So, I decided to talk to her first! I don't regret it. Hinata's a really cool person. She comes to my house almost every week, but I made her keep my existence a secret until you guys found out of your own accord."

She paused as she tied the bandages in a neat knot.

"There. Much better."

Shino looked at her handiwork. It was indeed, very professionally done.

"Are you training to be a medic-nin?" He asked, replacing his kunai in his pocket.

Ayame laughed and shook her head.

"Nope! I'm just a plain-old, average girl, planning to inherit my mom's vegetable shop. I wish I could be a ninja though. That'd be so awesome... But nah, I decided that I'm too spacey to be a ninja... and besides, you have to do all that training."

She stuck out her tongue.

"Yuck. I'd hate to do training."

Shino looked at his bandaged arm. It was odd that a normal girl could tend to wounds so effectively.

"Oh. Well, I did learn a little bit about treating people from Hinata. I suppose I might have to know a little, just in case. Besides, there's plenty of ways to hurt oneself while tending a vegetable shop. Why, you could break your hand while hauling a crate of eggplants! Or winter melon... Yummy!"

Shino looked at her sharply. This was the second time this happened. Was she a...-

"Nope, not telepathic, or anything funny like that. I can understand people really well. That's all. Ack, I just did it again, didn't I?"

Shino nodded.

Ayame looked at her watch and her eyes widened.

"Golly, it's already eight! I better get home and help my mom with the tomatoes. It was nice meeting you, Shino-kun!"

With that she ran off toward the suburbs of Konoha, leaving him unable to grasp a single solid emotion at all.

She was so sudden, so strange, so... eccentric. One second he didn't even know of her existence, and then a second later, she was here, binding his wounds and telling him all about herself.

But she was strange in a sort of good way, right?

He shrugged and headed toward the Aburame complex.

* * *

For the next few days, Ayame continued to talk to him everyday after training with Kurenai, around seven or eight in the evening. She would bind his cuts and wounds, they'd talk a bit and watch the sunset before returning to their respective homes.

He was beginning to understand Ayame a little better, but although she was an open and friendly person, there were still aspects about her that remained a mystery to him.

What was her purpose of watching them everyday? Was it simply out of boredom, or did she have an ulterior purpose?

But he did discover the secret of her odd clothing.

"Eh? My tunic?"  
"Mn."

"Well, what's wrong with it?" Ayame looked at her sleeve, confused.

"Noses, clifftops and flowers?"

Ayame stared at him as though he were the strange one.

"I thought you were smart!"

"Even Hinata figured this one out!"

"Fine! I'll give you a hint... I make all my clothes myself, and I give every piece a theme. This theme is a homophone!"

Then it hit him.

"That's right. It's Hana." She giggled.

(AN: Ok, to understand this, you have to understand some Japanese:

Flower: Hana  
Nose: Hana  
Tip/Edge/Tippy Top: Hana  
So Ayame's tunic is under the theme of "hana".)

"It's odd." The boy replied.

Ayame smiled.

He liked her smile. A little bit. A tiny bit. A micro itsy-bitsy bit.

It reminded him of a ray of sunshine. Soft, but warm. Very warm.

"I'm an odd person, I guess."

The two stood in the deserted field, enjoying the silence...

"You know what? You should come to my house for a visit sometime."

"Mn."

"Hey, look at my sleeve. I took a picture of your nose and had the picture printed into some cloth. See, this piece by my elbow is YOUR nose. Isn't that cool?"

"Mn."

"And this one on the back is Kiba-kun's nose."

"Mn."

"And this one is Hinata-chan's!"

"Mn."

"Look! It's another one of your nose!"

"Mn."

* * *

Green Tea: How'd you like it? Good? Bad? So/so? Please tell me in a review! 


	2. The Room

Green Tea: Hello! Welcome to the second chapter of How To Smile! I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or the characters, but Ayame is mine, and the plot is mine.

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NNCS: I hope you like the story! Thanks for reviewing 

Stacey:

* * *

How to Smile: 

Chapter 2: The Room

* * *

Shino followed Ayame along a worn dirt road, he organized his thoughts. 

Why was he doing this again?

He didn't know.

He supposed it was because he didn't have anything to do.  
Or maybe it was because of those bright blue eyes, begging him?

Nah.

-----------------------

When he arrived at her house, he was surprised.

It was a normal, plain, two-story house, with an average red tiled roof, and ordinary white stucco walls, surrounded by a well-tended, standard flower garden.

Based on Ayame's personality, he was expecting something along the lines of a crooked wooden shack painted in every color of the rainbow...  
Oh, with flowers growing out of the chimmey, of course, complete with patchy blankets hanging on the rafters of the house, along with the onions and leeks.

He felt slightly disappointed at the normality of it all.

"Eh? What's wrong?" Ayame smiled as she turned around to face the hesistant Aburame.

"It's..." Shino stopped, unable to go on. What was he doing here? He barely knew her, and now he's coming to her house? A girl's house no less...

"Oh my god! You're shy, aren't you? That's so cute!" Ayame giggled.

Shino felt himself blush... a little... very little... tiny... micro... bit. Come to think of it, that was the first time he blushed.

"Oh my god! You just blushed! Hahahaaa! Kawaiii!" The russet-haired girl clutched her stomach, laughing helplessly.

Shino flinched in surprise. This girl... wasn't supposed to be able to see that... Wasn't his collar high enough to cover his face?

Once again, as if she were reading his mind, Ayame answered his question.  
"Don't worry, I'm just really good at reading people's faces, especially yours. I specialize in you. But I already told you that! Come in already!"

Ayame pulled on Shino's sleeve and dragged him inside the house, and into the kitchen.

-----------------------

"Ara... Ayame, who's this?" A elegant brown-haired woman asked, looking up from a pot of boiling soup. The bug-master was surprised again. He expected Ayame's mother to be far more eccentric. Why was her family so... _normal_?

But the woman that stood before him looked much like any other perfectly normal, japanese housewife. Ayame shoved Shino forward.  
"Mama, this is Shino-kun! Shino-kun, this is my mother, Yukina Soramachi."

The woman smiled kindly at him.  
"I finally meet the boy that Ayame always talks about. And my, you do look just like how I imagined!"

If Ayame was embarassed, she showed no sign of it and dragged Shino off to see her dad.

Shino on the other hand, blushed for the second time in his entire life. Did Ayame really talk about him so much?

"Papa--! This is Shino-kun!"  
Ayame once again pushed Shino into the room, which turned out to be the study.

A man with gentle blue eyes and greying russet (much like Ayame's) hair swiveled around in his leather office chair, holding a thick, green, paperback book.  
"Shino-kun? You mean, THE Shino?" he asked in a deep, but slightly fragile voice.

"Haiii! THE Shino!" Ayame danced giddily from one foot to the other.

The older man looked over to Shino, and like his wife, smiled.  
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Shino-kun, my name is Masao Soramachi, as you know, I'm Ayame's father."

Shino wasn't quite sure how to respond, but he was saved from the ackward task by Ayame, who quickly dragged him off to somewhere once again.

-----------------------

As they walked up the stairs to Ayame's room, Ayame fiddled with the large ornamental lizard clipped in her hair.  
"As you can see, I got my eyes and my hair from Papa, and I got my smile from Mama AND Papa! Although Papa doesn't know where I got my personality from. Both of my parents are quiet people, so I suppose I made my personality all by myself!"

"Indeed." Shino thought to himself as she opened her door...

The dark-haired boy stepped into the room... and once again, entered the odd world of Ayame Soramachi... except this time it was horrifically unnerving.

The walls of her room were covered by layers of pictures of his team, from Hinata, to Kiba... to him... In fact, there were lots of pictures of him.

It seemed like on every table there were stacks of more pictures, from Akamaru to close-up shots of Hinata's Byakkugan. The floor was also littered with more pictures and odd scraps of fabric and magazine cutouts.

In short, the room looked like a humongous scrapbook, from the picture-plastered walls, to the sea of clothing and fabric covering the floor, to the patchwork bedding, and mess of random objects tossed haphazardly on the single table, dresser and chair in the room.

A very messy, chaotic, colorful, scrappy, patchy, scrapbook.

Shino couldn't help but wonder why she had a empty raspberry jam jar and a bicycle training wheel on her desk, all laying next to a gigantic sewing machine.

Ayame didn't even look slightly abashed. She shoved aside various pieces of odd clothing, much like the one she wore and looked around a little expectantly.  
"Well?"

Shino didn't quite know what to say.

He didn't want to be rude, but this was... frightening. Yes, he didn't use that word often, but it wasn't every day that he walked into a room covered with pictures of him.

"Yeah, I know, Hinata thought the same thing when I first showed her as well."

Shino gulped. Was she... what they called... a rabid fangirl?

"Nah, I'm not one of those, I just specialize in information gathering. That's why I know you so well. And that's how I'm able to read what you're thinking right now." She finished, sucessfully answering his questions.

She turned to her wall and picked out three pictures of him, all seemingly identical.  
"See these? They look like the same thing, right?"

She stuck her tongue out at him as he nodded.  
"Wrong!"

She quickly grabbed a tassled professor cap from no where and jammed it on her head. Then she straightened her back and cleared her throat dramatically.  
"Ahem, ahem."

Using a wooden stick as pointer, she pointed at the first picture of him. He was staring forward, glasses up and collar covering half of his face.  
"This is a snap-shot of Aburame Shino's amused-at-Kiba-because-he-just-messed-up face. Notice the faint wrinkles under his eyes and the lowering of the eyebrows by a millimeter. Almost, there's a reflection of Kiba running around on fire in the shades."

She pointed at the second.  
"This is Aburame Shino's annoyed-at-Kiba-because-he's-being-stupid face. His forehead is more stretched out and his upper-cheek muscle is flexed. Once again, the shades show a picture of Kiba making a face at the subject, Aburame Shino."

The wooden stick tapped the last picture. "This is your disappointed-because-you-didn't-get-your-way face. The cheek muscles are slightly tilted to the right side on both cheeks and the eyebrows are slanted as well."

She grinned and tilted her head, like she always did.  
"Any questions?"

He stared. And stared. And stared some more.

She giggled, turned around and shuffled through her drawer once more, humming a strange tune that she later on swore was in F minor. (Which she also claimed, was the sexiest key that anyone ever composed in.)

Shino stared at her strange patchwork tunic of flowers, noses and cliff edges.

So strange.

* * *

Green Tea: Ugh. That royally sucked, but oh well, I really want to finish this story... Review please, if you're reading this. Thankies! 


	3. Can Blind Men See Color?

Green Tea: Yay! Third Chapter! This story doesn't seem to be all that popular, but oh well. I enjoy writing this story the most, so it's going to be written whether people read it or not! Please read and enjoy!

NNSC: I'm glad you liked it Hope you like this one.

Stacey: Yes, F minor!

* * *

Chapter 3: Can Blind Men See Color?

* * *

"Shino-kun, take a guess, which tomatoes are mine."

It was a hot summer afternoon, and once again, Shino found himself in the company of one Ayame Soramachi, this time, he was visiting her vegetable garden.

Shino pointed to a small, withered looking tomato.

Ayame pretended to look offended.  
"I'm not THAT bad of a gardener!"

And then she froze and quirked an eyebrow.  
"You just made a joke, didn't you?"

"I guess."

"You do know that that's the first time you've ever joked around before... right?"

"Yes."

"Ok, then."

Ayame surveyed the tomatoes and finally pointed to a patch where several gigantic, bright red tomatoes grew.  
"Those are mine."

Compared to the tomatoes growing beside it, her tomatoes looked like giants.

Shino stared.

and stared.

and stared some more.

"Yep! Those are mine. And I didn't even have to add any fertilizer or anything!"

The red-haired girl smiled and crouched next to the tomato plant.  
"Want to know why?"

Shino nodded.

"Because the best fertilizer in the world... is love."  
With that, she leaned over and kissed a tomato.

Then she stood up and linked her hands behind her back, like she always did when she was content.  
"Just wait, that tomato will grow to be the biggest of them all."

Then she smiled.

A raindrop fell on her pointy nose.

* * *

"Ne, ne, Shino-kun... Do you see?"  
Ayame pointed at the little raindrops falling down from the sky as they took refuge under a greenhouse roof from the sudden downpour of rain.

Shino stared at the droplets and shrugged.  
"Water. What about it?"

The girl shook her head, curly red locks bouncing on her shoulders.  
"No, no, silly! Look!"

Shino stared at the droplets some more. There seemed to be nothing special about the droplets...?  
"I don't see anything."

"Really?"  
"Mn."  
"That's so weird... you really can't see it?"

This was beginning to irritate him a little.  
"What is it?"

Ayame shook her head and sighed.  
"I suppose you can't hear it either..."

"What is it?"

She was quiet for a moment, as she stared glassy-eyed at the droplets.

But she did not answer his question.  
"Tell me Shino, Can you show a blind man what color looks like?"

Shino was silent. Ayame continued.  
"Can you describe music to a deaf?"

"No."

"Why are you so sure?"

"It can't be done." Shino replied impassively

Ayame turned and stared at him curiously before resuming her observation of rain-droplets.  
"I think it can."

She bit her lower lip in thought, and then added,  
"Maybe that's why you can't see them."

* * *

Shino sat in a chair in his room and stared at the window silently after he got home. No one bothered him, he was always like this anyways.

However, they had no way of knowing that today was different. Very different.

Shino normally stared outside, mind blank and empty.

Today, as he stared outside at the raindrops beating against the glass, he was searching for something, listening for something. But he couldn't find it.

If someone asked what he was looking for, he didn't think he could give a definate answer. After all, he wasn't given one either.

But even so, he continued to look, until he fell asleep at his chair. Perhaps he dreamt that he found it. Or at least, he liked to imagine he did.

* * *

Green Tea: Please review! Thanks for reading! 


	4. Earth Angel

Green Tea: Welcome to the fourth chapter of How To Smile! I don't really have much to say about this one. It was inspired by some lyrics by Elvis, as you can see from the title. Unfortunately, I can't post lyrics, so oh well. TT

Enjoy!

* * *

How to Smile

Chapter 4: Earth Angel

* * *

Spring bloomed to summer, and eventually summer relented to fall, the season of dried leaves, brisk breezes and crisp air.

Shino passed the year smoothly, like he would for any other year. Like always, nothing exciting happened. Nothing bad, nor anything good. Despite the discovery of Ayame, his life remained the same, more or less.

Ayame. He didn't see her often. Perhaps he'd take a walk with her, or talk with her maybe once a month, or at most once every two weeks. But he found that he didn't quite mind these little excursions and trips. He found it interesting to see how they could both exist in one reality, yet view the world in such a different way.

It was on such an excursion that he discovered something quite amazing and a little shocking about her... and himself.

* * *

"Shino-kun! You have today off, so please come with me to see something really cool!" Ayame begged, pouting childishly. 

"What is it?" Shino asked.

"It's really, really, really cool! You have to see it!"

"What is it?"

Ayame huffed.  
"I can't tell you! Pleaseeee? It's almost noon, so we have to go before it's gone!"

"Why don't you ask Hinata?"

"Because she's with her father, and she can't comeeee... Pleaseeee, Shino-kuuun?" She whined, looking extremely helpless.

Shino sighed and gave up.  
"Ok."

The girl's eyes lit up happily. She beckoned for him to follow and sprinted off towards the forest.

* * *

"This is it!" Ayame proclaimed, stretching her skinny, pale arms out in front of her. 

The two of them stood in a small, circular, forest clearing, surrounded by trees and carpeted by dried leaves of red and yellows. In the center stood a large, majestic willow tree.

Ayame ran over to willow tree, and pointed at a large patch light reflected onto it's worn, ancient bark.  
"Look!"

Shino blinked.

Ayame rolled her eyes, like a teenager would when dealing with younger siblings.  
"It's green!"

The patch of light was dyed a pretty, light green color because of the green leaves that filtered the light from above.

Shino blinked again.

"Argh! You're blind, aren't you? Come over here."

Ayame pulled the boy over to the willow tree, positioning him so that he stood right in the center of the patch of light.  
"Do you see?"

Shino shook his head.

The girl rolled her eyes again.  
"Ok, get out of the way, and lemme show you."

Ayame stood in front of the oak tree and stretched out her arms.  
"Do you see?"

Ah, he saw it now.

The green leaves filtered the light in such a way, that it shined onto the tree and created a patch of light. At least, what seemed like just an ordinary patch of light...

But when one stood in front of the tree, in the middle, the light resembled large, leaf-green wings that protruded from one's back.

"Lookie! I'm an earth fairy!" Ayame giggled.

Shino took refuge from the sunlight under a shady oak nearby.

"I found this spot, about two years ago... when I was out here exploring... I was just taking a short lunch break when I noticed this."

Shino nodded.  
"You're rather observative."

The red-haired girl grinned cheekily.  
"I am, aren't I? It's my favorite thing about myself!"

The Aburame nodded again.

Ayame continued, unaware that she was slowly loosing his attention.  
"Anyways, this little thing happens twice a year. Once on March eleventh, and once on September tenth, from twelve o'clock to two o'clock in the afternoon... I wonder what day it would shine on if it was a leap year..."

The red-haired girl pondered this for a while and gave up, shaking her head.  
"I'm no good at arithmatics... Anyways, Mama and Papa are on their anniversary date today, so I get to roam the woods today!"

Shino pushed up his glasses, not used to being subject to so much sunlight.

"Did Hinata come here before?" He asked.

"Yep! I brought her here last year! She was helping me pick wild strawberries."

The two basked for a moment in the peaceful, comtemplative silence. Ayame picked up a dried acorn and toyed with the fragile cap.  
"Anyways, Shino-kun, what are your parents like? I never met them before. At least, I don't think."

Shino didn't exactly know what to say.  
"They're much like Hinata's parents."

She dropped the acorn and picked up another.  
"You mean her dad?"

"Mn."

"Well, they can't be JUST like Hinata's dad, tell me more!"

"They're not like your parents... at all."

She just stared at him.  
"What do you mean?"

Shino racked his brain for a way to explain it.  
"They're not... very... sociable... to anyone... not even each other."

Ayame laughed.  
"I'm sure they love each other anyways!"

The boy shook his head.  
"Aburames don't generally marry for emotion, or love, or whatever you call it. It's basically arranged. There's no choice, but not that anyone minds, really."

The acorns fell to the ground suddenly.  
"Marriage without love!"

The Aburame turned and looked at Ayame, stunned.

A mask of grief and pain fixed itself over her face, contrasting horribly with her normal, happy expression.

"That's... that's... Terrible!" With that, the girl began to weep.

Shino was stunned. Why would she cry for someone she didn't even know?

"I... I can't... imagine... ever doing something like that. It must be so horrible... So horrible... So scary... So... lonely..."

For some reason, seeing her like this... made him uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable.  
She had to smile, she should always have a smile on her face. Otherwise, it felt like the world would end...

He adverted his gaze onto a spot above her shoulder.  
"Don't cry. It's not that bad... Many people can marry without love. They do it all the time. It's not that uncommon."

To his slight relief, the girl stopped crying, but still looked very troubled.

"But... then... they must be... so unhappy..."  
She chewed on the side of her lip.

"Not everyone will end up being happy in this world." Shino replied bluntly.

This seemed to stun her for a moment, and she stood there in thought, light green wings still "protruding" from her back.

At last, she spoke.  
"Mama told me about that once... that there are people out there, who don't know how to smile... that have forgotten to smile... that never learned how to smile..."

Ayame turned and looked back at the large willow tree, eyes glazed over in thought.  
"Do you know why Mama and Papa have the exact same smile?"

The boy said no, and asked why.

"It's because Mama was the one that taught Papa how to smile."  
With this, Ayame's face recovered back into it's normal, peaceful expression.

Shino felt the clench in his chest relax, allowing him to breathe freely.

"Papa told me once, that a long time ago, he didn't smile. But everything changed for the better after he met Mama... I bet it's like being... being freed, like that. It must be a wonderful thing. A great thing." 

Ayame turned around and looked up at the sky, her hands cupped gently, as though she were trying to grasp the sunshine.  
"I may not be a ninja, or a genius in anything, but that doesn't mean that I can't do great things. There are people that disagree with me... But I believe that the greatest thing that a person can do..."

She turned her head to face Shino.  
"Is to teach someone how to smile."

Ayame smiled peacefully, calmly, like she was reliving a innocent memory from her past. "That's my goal in life."

For a second, even through his tinted glasses, Shino didn't see just a plain, red-haired girl, trying to play make-believe with a patch of sunlight.

He saw an angel.

An angel with light green wings, beckoning him.  
An angel with the kindest smile in existance.  
An Earth Angel.

"Shino-kun?"  
Her voice jerked him out of his thoughts, back to reality.  
"I want to go find some wild berries... Want to come? You don't have anything else to do, right?"

"Mn."

As he followed her through the forest, he remembered something. He didn't know how to smile either.

* * *

Green Tea: Love it? Hate it? Please tell me in a review! 


	5. Colors

Green Tea: Konnichiwa, minna! It's been a while since I last updated! (October) Sorry I'm so late on everything. School has just been so hectic lately. So anyways...

Here. We. Go! Enjoy!

* * *

How To Smile:

Chapter 5: Colors

* * *

Tsunade rolled up the mission scroll after reading it and handed it to Kurenai.

"So... Will you accept this mission?"

Kurenai hesistated. It was a dangerous A, bordering S-class mission, regarding some renegade members of Akatsuki. She wasn't too sure whether her team could handle it.

The Hokage interlaced her fingers and rested her chin on them.

"Once again, I would assign Jounins for this... but as you know, our village is a little low on ninjas... We've lost quite a few in the last Akatsuki-Orochimaru encounter."

Tsunade met Kurenai's crimson eyes.

"Konoha needs your team."

The Jounin looked away and then nodded.

"We'll take it."

---------------------------

Shino asked Ayame to meet him at the training field that afternoon. He waited for her, slightly apprehensive.

"Shino-kun!"

He turned around to see Ayame running towards him, wearing a light blue summer dress.

When she finally reached him, she was out of breath.

"Sorry I'm a bit late, I had to stay and help with the closing up."

She huffed.

"So, what did you want to tell me, Shino?"

Shino looked away.

"We're going on a mission tomorrow."

Ayame's smile immediately disappeared.

She understood.

If this was so important that he actually called her here to see him... This had to be a dangerous mission. An A-class... maybe even a S-class.

"You're not sure whether you'll make it back... alive... right?"

"Yes."

The two were silent as they watched the sunset together, like they had so many times before.

Except this time it was different.

This could be... the last time...

After the sun set, Shino quietly walked away, leaving Ayame alone in the middle of the training field.

She turned around in the direction that he left after he was gone.

"Shino..."

---------------------------

There was a tapping at his window...

No.

Not a tapping. A thud... Every few seconds or so.

An intruder?

No.

Someone trying to get his attention... At midnight?

Shino dressed and walked over to his window.

As he looked down, his eyes widened.

Ayame was standing outside, holding a handful of rocks.

---------------------------

When he walked outside, he saw her standing there, waiting for him. Silently, she took his hand and led him to the same training ground where they watched the sunset.

He didn't question her.

She plopped down on the grass of the field and stared at the stars. He did the same.

All was silent except for the weak singing of the late summer cicadas.

And then she spoke.

"Ok, ask me what you've been dying to ask."

Her question caught him off guard.

She rolled her eyes.

"Just ask it already."

He was confused at first. And then he understood.

"Why did you choose to observe MY team, instead of someone elses'?"

"That's not the question, think again."

He narrowed his eyes.

"Just think."

Finally, he asked again.

"Why did you choose to observe me?"

She huffed.

"Try again. That's still not the question."

Shino racked his brain. If not that, then what did she mean?

He thought back to every thing she said.

-It's my goal in life.-

-To teach someone how to smile-

-Are you blind?-

-Can't you hear it?-

-Shino-kun!-

Then he thought of it.

"Why did you choose to teach me?"

Ayame was silent for a long time.

Then she spoke.  
"My mother gave me not only the gift of understanding... but also the gift of sight. I see colors in everything. Anything. Anyone."

She sat up, gazing at the big dipper.  
"I was at the swings one day, when I was eight. And I saw a weird little boy. He wore round, dark, glasses. And he had a really high collar. I couldn't even see his face. He was sitting on a bench, looking at the ground. I was intrigued by him."

"Me."

"Yes. That was you. But it wasn't any of these things that made you weird."

She sighed.  
"I couldn't see a single color in you."

Shino jerked his head sharply to look at her.  
"That's right. I couldn't see a single color in you. Everyone had colors, even the saddest of people, even the most pitiful of people at least had the color black."

She turned and looked at him.  
"I knew the instant I saw you, that you would be the one. The one I would teach how to smile."

The bug-master was at a loss for words, and stared at her openly.

"It's odd, isn't it? I didn't even know your name! But I knew it had to be you. I'm not a big fan of fate, but that was... I don't know. Something."

Ayame tapped her chin thoughtfully.

"So... I spent the next years, observing you, learning all that I could about you. I wanted to know everything about you. I wanted to understand you. But I didn't dare to approach you until you noticed me."

"Why?"

"True understanding is rooted from mutual acknowledgement of each other's existence. I couldn't force it on you. I can't MAKE you learn. But I could teach you, if you wanted me to."

Ayame stopped and played with her long, russet hair.

Shino allowed the facts to sink in, slowly.

And then he understood what he wanted.  
He...

"You know, I was wrong." She suddenly said.

Shino raised an eyebrow.

"Yes, I was wrong about you. About your colors. I must have been blind as well, when I first saw you. But lately..."

"What?"

"You have colors too."

She tilted her head and stared at him, smiling.  
"Yes, you have lots of colors. They're not bright. They're dark, but very beautiful. Colors that I've never seen before... I don't even know their names..."

He looked into her eyes, and felt them penetrating into him. Piercing through his armor of tinted glass, looking into his very soul.

She drew closer and closer to him, until their noses touched.

He felt himself drowning in her brillant blue eyes that shined ceaurlean, even under the dim moonlight.

She sighed and he felt her warm breath on his cheek.  
"Such beautiful colors, I could stare at them... all day..."

And then she was gone.

He saw the shadow of her retreating back, walking off to the woods.  
"I'll wait for your answer, once you return. Good luck with the mission."

Then she stopped. But she didn't turn around.  
"Oh, and you know where to find me."

He watched her shadow move away until it was gone, swallowed by the darker shadows of the tall forest trees.

* * *

Green Tea: Woot! I've been dying to write this for a while! The next chapter will be the finale! Please Review! 


	6. Happiness

Green Tea: Late as usual, a good 3 weeks later than the day that I said I'd write this. It's hopeless, I can't keep a deadline to save my life (It's the same in real life too). A pity, I'll pay dearly for it when I actually grow up and get a job... Oh well. In-zoi! (Enjoy) It's the last chapter! Wow! And it's long!

Oh! In case people were confused and all, here's a rough sketch of the timeline in this story:

**Spring, Year 1:** Chapter 1  
**Late Spring, Year 1:** Chapter 2  
**Summer, Year 1:** Chapter 3  
**Fall Year 1:** Chapter 4  
_(Skip from Fall Year 1 to Summer Year 2)_  
**Late Summer Year 2:** Chapter 5  
**Early Spring-Spring Year 3:** Chapter 6 --- This chapter

* * *

How To Smile:

Chapter 6: Happiness

* * *

It was early spring morning, the sort of morning that you would wake up to and open your windows, allowing the fresh scent of early blooming Daphnes and Magnolias to waft in, and after smelling it for a few minutes, you would finally be awake enough to notice it was a bit cold, and sadly close your windows with a sigh. The sweet floral scent would still linger in your room, and you'd smile as you dressed and got ready for a fresh spring day. 

At least, this was the sort of morning you'd wake up to if you were Ayame Soramachi.

After clipping a rhinestone studded flower clip into her hair (one of her more generic ones, but rather pretty nontheless) Ayame glanced at the calendar-slash-to-do-list beside her vanity table.

It was already the eleventh of March, she noted, a good sixty to seventy days after the day they were proclaimed missing. Thirty-three days after they were proclaimed dead.

By 'they' she meant the four people that were the subject of the many pictures decorating her room.

Team Kurenai left for Grass Country in late summer, August fifteenth, to be exact and were expected back sometime in late fall. When they still didn't return by early December, the Hokage herself sent out ANBU teams to search for them. They were not found by the end of December and were officially proclaimed missing.

When they still hadn't been found by early Feburary, they were pronounced dead. Feburary sixth was the day of their funeral, and all throughout Konoha, everyone wore black clothing to honor their deaths.

Everyone except one person, that is.

That day, Ayame refused to wear black, despite the pleading of her parents. She also refused to attend the mass funeral that was held in their honor. Those who did not know the girl claimed she was spiteful and rude, but those that did know her knew that she refused to honor their deaths for another reason entirely.

She refused to believe that they were dead.

While the rest of the town spoke of the four ninjas in past-tense, in sorrowful and hushed voices, Ayame spoke of them as though she were expecting them to return tomorrow. She continued to speak their names with no inhibition, just with the same fondness in her voice like always.

Those that did not know her wondered if she had any doubts yet, whether she silently grieved for them when she was alone. But those that did know her knew she did not; that when she spoke of their return so casually, she truly did expect them to return.

-------------------------

Ayame walked downstairs to kitchen, where she was greeted by her mother. The words they exchanged were the same every morning for the past six months, like a ritual.

"Ara, Ayame, leaving so early?"

Ayame nodded.  
"Haiii! I promised Shino-kun that I'd welcome him home today."

Her mother reached for the wicker basket hanging by the kitchen door."Well, if you must, take this. It's filled with some lunch, so you two can have a nice picnic."

The girl hugged her mother and smiled.  
"Arigato Gozaimasu, Mama!"

And then Ayame would take the basket and walk down the street, like every morning. Her neighbors would all smile at her sadly as she passed by every morning, holding the same wicker basket filled with lunch. And they would smile sadly again when she returned every afternoon, the lunch in the basket untouched.

In their minds, they all dreaded and waited for the day that she would finally stop walking down the road, holding the picnic basket. It would be a very sad day indeed.

-------------------------

Kurenai sighed contentedly as she and her team traveled back to Konoha, en route the forest.

The past six months were needless to say, very difficult and stressful.

Soon after setting out from Konoha last August, her team was immediately ambushed by a group of ninjas. While the ninjas were not very strong, there were enough of them to cause quite a bit of trouble for her team. After defeating the ninjas, they learned that the ninjas were hired by the renegade Akatsuki members to attack them.

And so followed six months of chasing down the Akatsuki, while being attacked and ambushed every step of the way. They finally managed to track down and eliminate the spies for the Akatsuki, and the attacks stopped, leaving them clear to chase down the criminals in earnest.

Not only had this mission taken a lot of time, but it had also sent them all across the shinobi countries, from the Sand, to the Grass, to the Rain, Tea and back. As Konoha's resident genius would say, it was very troublesome.

Kurenai turned back to her team.  
"Well, we're heading back to Konoha at last. I heard from some villagers back in Grass Country say that they already pronounced us as dead."

Kiba sniggered.  
"I expect they'll get a nice surprise. It'd be really funny if they thought we were ghosts, eh, Akamaru?"

Akamaru yipped happily in reply.

Hinata, on the other hand looked quite worried."I... I'm sure everyone must be really, really upset... I wonder what father will say..."

The older woman smiled at her kindly.   
"Don't worry about it, Hinata, I'm sure he'll be more relieved than angry."

Shino was silent, but his mind was filled with worries.  
_  
I wonder how Ayame fared through all this._

-------------------------

When they arrived at the entrance of Konoha, they stopped and stared at the wooden gates, enjoying the sweet pangs of nostalgia.

Kurenai readjusted the straps of her bag.  
"I have to go and report to the Hokage, no doubt she'll want to be first to know."

"F-father m-mu-must be worried..."  
Hinata stuttered, trembling visibly.

Kiba grinned.  
"I'm gonna give that Naruto a scare or two while he still thinks I'm a ghost. He'll probably fall for it too!"

Kurenai turned to Shino.  
"You'll be at the Aburame complex, I presume?"

To her surprise, the bug master shook his head.  
"No, I have some other things to attend to first."

-------------------------

Honestly, he didn't quite know why he was being so irrational.

Every bit of him, down to the last brain cell was telling him that it was impossible. That it was stupid, wishful thinking. He was already four months late, he argued, it was ridiculous to think that she would be there.

And yet he still ran to his team's training field and straight on into the woods surrounding it, without hesistation.

Hell, he didn't even know where he was going, having only been to the place once, and even then he didn't really pay attention on the way there.

And yet he knew where it was, distinctly, somewhere, calling him. He could be blindfolded and still he knew he would find his way.

_He saw the shadow of her retreating back, walking off to the woods.  
"I'll wait for your answer, once you return. Good luck with the mission."_

_Then she stopped. But she didn't turn around.  
"Oh, and you know where to find me."_

And then, before he knew it, he was there.

He stopped for a moment and stared at the scene.

It was beautiful.

The flowers were in bloom all around the clearing, and the clearing itself was covered by a carpet of fresh green grass, still sparkling from the early morning dew.  
The flowering cherry trees surrounding him were in full bloom, and showers of Sakura blossoms rained down from the sky, striking a sharp contract to the barren trees he saw two years ago.  
And in the center of the clearing stood the majestic oak tree, only bigger and more magnificent than ever.

He then remembered his purpose for coming and scanned the scene. Ayame wasn't there.

What a fool he was for coming.

Shino was about to leave before he caught a flash of russet from the corner of his eye. He whipped around to see her head poking out from behind the oak tree.

He blinked, making sure that it wasn't an illusion. It wasn't. She was there.

She walked out from behind the oak tree, smiling like she always did, wearing a brilliant tunic of red strawberries and golden grapes; it clashed horribly with her purple sandals, but he knew she couldn't care less.

Ayame laughed.  
"Shino-kunnn!"

He walked over to the oak tree, a bit dazed, feeling as though he were dreaming and clinging onto the last shreds of this wonderful dream, not wanting to return to reality.

Behind the oak tree, he was greeted with the sight of a delicious picnic already spread out and waiting for him.

Ayame giggled."You're just in time! I finished setting out lunch, and then, there you are!"

She picked up a strawberry from the bowl sitting on the blanket and bit into it.  
"I brought some early strawberries from our garden. You'd think they'd be sour, but they're even sweeter than the ones we pick in summer. We always sell these in early spring and everyone just loves them. But, I can't wait until the p-"

He cut her off.  
"You're here."

The girl held her hands up in front of her and looked at them as if she were confirming her own existence.  
"Yes, indeed I am."

"How did you know that I'd return today?"

Her reply was simple and innocent.  
"I didn't."

Shino felt his mouth go dry. Did she mean to say that she... no, she didn't... she couldn't have...

"Oh, but I did."

The boy was surprised for a second, before he remembered that she was an expert at reading his thoughts.

He stared at her through his tinted glasses.  
"Even in the rain?"

She nodded.

"And the snow?"

She nodded again.

"And the frosts, and storms?"

Ayame laughed.  
"Silly, we only have storms in late spring and even those are nice and warm showers. I like being out in Konoha's storms, just as much as the plants do."

Shino shook his head.  
"I thought the village gave us up for dead."

She laughed again.  
"They did, but you didn't honestly think that I'd believe that mumbo-jumbo, did you? I thought you knew me better than that, Shino-kun. I told you that I'd be here, and I don't like to break promises, you know."

Ayame picked up another strawberry.  
"Anyways, I'm still waiting for your answer. Got one yet?"

He was confused for a moment before he remembered and he nodded.

The russet-haired girl finished the strawberry and threw away the stem.  
"And?"

"Teach me."

She was quiet as she stood and walked over to him. Grinning, she faced him and reached one slender hand up to his face.

Shino was grasped by a feeling of deja-vu as he found himself once more drowning in her sky-blue eyes. In fact, he was so enraptured by them that he didn't even feel it when she folded back his collar.

However, he did feel it when she pressed her lips against his and his eyes widened behind the tinted glass. He tasted strawberries... and flowers... sunshine... and fresh spring air, before it ended just as quickly as it came.

Ayame backed away from him, giggling, blushing and a bit breathless.

Like a flower under warm spring sunshine, happiness bloomed inside his chest, spreading out throughout his body.

And then he felt it.

It started out as a subtle flicker in his chest, almost tickling him, and then, as if by magic, it spread upwards, to his face, like the heat from a blush. The corners of his mouth twitched, once, twice, before slowly curving up into a small, but genuine smile

She laughed and returned his smile with one of her own.  
"Welcome home, Shino-kun!"

-------------------------

A little extra:

As he held her in his arms, leaning by the oak tree that afternoon, he noticed something.

"Ayame."

She stirred in his arms, but continued to sleep contentedly in his lap.

"Ayame."

This time she awoke and rubbed her eyes.  
"Shino-kun?"

He tapped her on the head.  
"It's March eleventh."

She yawned.  
"And?"

He pointed to the oak tree that they were leaning on.  
"We both have wings."

Ayame stared for a moment and smiled.  
"That's right, we do."

-------------------------

Green Tea: ZOMG! It's DONE! XDDD YESH! Second fic that's done! My longest one yet! A big thanks to all my reviewers, readers, supporters and friends. I couldn't have done this without you! THANK SO MUCH!

Extra Glomps To:  
NNCS (x5): Thanks for being here with me from the start! You have no idea how much your reviews mean to me. Seriously, thanks, SO MUCH!  
Stacey (x2): Stacey, you're special, so I love you so much anyways. Thankies, moi love!  
Rahil: I'm glad you liked my fic. Your approval makes me feel so special!  
Crasiness (x2): Hope you liked this "chappie"! Thanks for the extra morale boost! Much love to you too!  
AmberFox and Lyell: Here's the kiss you wanted! Hope it's everything you hoped for! Thanks!  
tlpg92: I wuv you to death too, for reviewing! I may make an epilogue, I've certainly mused around with the idea before.  
ShadowFiction: ShinoxOC fics rock, and you rock too! Glad you like mine. Yes, we certainly need more Shino lubb. Thanks much for your review!

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